Brad Smith on AI as a Printing Press Moment for North America

Microsoft President Brad Smith compares the rise of artificial intelligence to the moment when the printing press changed human thought forever. He expressed this in a televised interview conducted with a TV network known for business and technology coverage. In that conversation, Smith framed AI as a watershed development with the power to transform how people research, learn, communicate, and handle data. He highlighted that this technology can unlock faster and more accurate access to information, enabling researchers to test ideas, verify findings, and share insights at a pace that was previously unimaginable. The emphasis was on how AI can support progress across multiple sectors by enhancing capabilities in data analysis, pattern recognition, and decision support. For the United States and Canada, this perspective reinforces the sense that AI is not just a niche tool for tech firms but a broad shift that touches health, education, industry, and everyday problem solving. Smith’s framing also underscored how AI might help open up access to high quality sample data, enabling more robust experiments and more rigorous replication in research settings, while still requiring careful governance to ensure reliability and fairness in outputs.